Tag: spirit
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Fallow season
Indeed, the LORD will comfort Zion; He will comfort all her waste places And her wilderness He will make like Eden, And her desert like the garden of the LORD; Joy and gladness will be found in her, Thanksgiving and sound of a melody. – Isaiah 51:3 Last Fall, during the week I spent with…
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Unbusy
I decided to give up busyness for Lent. Fasting or refraining at Lent is traditionally about food, but it can be applied to just about any habitual behavior that creates distance between you and God. While Lent is a time of penitence, it is not meant to be about punishment. If we are disciples, we are not “giving…
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Welcomed in
I remember the day I walked into my church for the first time. I had been feeling the pull to seek a church, even though I had only attended worship a handful of times in my life. At the time, I lived within walking distance of at least five churches, so I had my pick. I…
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The heavenly party (for Kristen)
My friend Kristen Dellaporta left this world on Friday, December 18 after living with metastatic breast cancer with wit, passion, love, and courage. Her motto up until the end, and inked on her arm was, “In grace, in love, be relentless.” French author Émile Zola’s famous pronouncement, “If you ask me what I came to do…
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Listening with the Spirit
At the end of September, I attended my first week of residency in the Certificate in Spiritual Direction program at Columbia Theological Seminary. It was an intense, emotional, and illuminating time spent with lay people and clergy who, like me, felt our ministries could benefit from training in the practice of sacred listening. When we listen…
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Give yourself a treat (Advent Day 20)
Are visions of sugarplums dancing in your head? As I write this, my daughter is dancing joyfully in the kitchen to Tchaikovsky’s “The Nutcracker Suite,” her enthusiasm no doubt fueled by some treats from her classroom holiday party earlier today. Celebrate the magic and sweetness of this season with a treat, something to warm and lift…
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Whole, perfect and beautiful
Take heart and know that you are beloved and worthy beyond measure by our Creator. You are whole, perfect and beautiful, regardless of your circumstances or issues. Good People, most royal greening verdancy, rooted in the sun, you shine with radiant light. – Hildegard of Bingen The Divine beauty we see reflected in nature is also…
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21 Day Practice: Days 10 and 11 – That’s why they call it a practice
I woke up yesterday feeling pretty good and the first part of the morning went as usual. Then, there was an unexpected change of plans and suddenly, a wave of stress and anxiety hit that I couldn’t shake for hours. That, and the Grumpy Monkey was back, tossing mental banana peels in my path. I…
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